Maldives have signed and ratified the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons at a signing ceremony held in the United Nations Headquarters in New York.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid signed the treaty on behalf of the Government of Maldives and deposited the Instrument of Ratification with the United Nations Secretary General. The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was opened for signature on September 20, 2017.
The treaty is the first international legally binding instrument to completely prohibit the development, use and threat of use of nuclear weapons and forms an integral part of international efforts towards the complete elimination of nuclear weapons.
The treaty was approved by the cabinet on August 27. It was subsequently approved by the Parliament of Maldives on September 3.
Maldives have been a vehement supporter of international disarmament and non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction since joining the United Nations. It ratified the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1970 and has consistently taken a moral and principled position on the use or the threat of use of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction.